# Biden wins the election. How active will he be in purging Trump loyalists? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [July 21, 2020, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-wins-the-election-how-active-will-he-be-in-purging-trump-loyalists/915953 "2020-07-21T21:11:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![FlikTheBlue](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fliktheblue/32/10972_2.png) [@FlikTheBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlikTheBlue)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2020, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-wins-the-election-how-active-will-he-be-in-purging-trump-loyalists/915953/1 "2020-07-21T21:11:47Z")
Let’s say Biden wins. How active will he be in purging Trump loyalists? Here are two links to news stories about Trump getting rid of (or attempting to) career officials in various departments to install Trump loyalists. > **[White House intensifies effort to install Pentagon personnel seen as loyal to...](https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/white-house-intensifies-effort-to-install-pentagon-personnel-seen-as-loyal-to-trump/2020/06/25/1bfeee3a-9f86-11ea-9d96-c3f7c755fd6e_story.html)** > > The effort comes amid strained relations between Trump and his defense secretary over the military’s involvement in the response to recent protests. > **[Trump team launches a sweeping loyalty test to shore up its defenses](https://www.politico.com/news/2020/07/15/trump-appointees-loyalty-interviews-364616)** > > Political appointees across the Trump administration are being subjected to unusual interviews to gauge their support for the president. There is also the matter of the various on the ground federal LEOs in Portland and soon to be in other major cities, who are violating people’s rights to peaceful protest and detaining people without charges. IMHO one of Biden’s main tasks, should he win, should be to get rid of all such federal employees. Do you all think Biden is likely to undertake such a course of action if he wins? ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2020, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-wins-the-election-how-active-will-he-be-in-purging-trump-loyalists/915953/2 "2020-07-21T22:24:24Z")
I’m just about certain he will pick a new Attorney General. Maybe he will even replace Kellyanne with George. ---
**Author:** ![FlikTheBlue](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fliktheblue/32/10972_2.png) [@FlikTheBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlikTheBlue)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2020, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-wins-the-election-how-active-will-he-be-in-purging-trump-loyalists/915953/3 "2020-07-21T22:31:42Z")
Right. Of course there will be a new Attorney General, Secretary of Defense, Secretary of State, etc. To clarify, the question is how active will the new cabinet level staff be in getting rid of the people the next level down, such as federal prosecutors, the top level of generals and admirals, the upper level guys in DHS who are running the federal operation in Portland, etc. Those are the people who, IMHO, also need to go in order to start reversing the damage Trump has done. ---
**Author:** ![FlikTheBlue](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fliktheblue/32/10972_2.png) [@FlikTheBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlikTheBlue)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2020, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-wins-the-election-how-active-will-he-be-in-purging-trump-loyalists/915953/4 "2020-07-21T22:40:20Z")
To late to edit. I’m referring specifically to any individuals who are in their position because Trump purged the previous career official, as opposed to someone who has been in their position since the days of Reagan or Bush and just happens to be a Republican. ---
**Author:** ![Jas09](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d07c76/32.png) [@Jas09](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jas09)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2020, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-wins-the-election-how-active-will-he-be-in-purging-trump-loyalists/915953/5 "2020-07-21T22:49:35Z")
> [@FlikTheBlue](#): > > To clarify, the question is how active will the new cabinet level staff be in getting rid of the people the next level down, such as federal prosecutors, the top level of generals and admirals, the upper level guys in DHS who are running the federal operation in Portland, etc. Well each one of those is different. Prosecutors are routinely replaced en masse by incoming presidents, so that will be easy. Generals and Admirals are career military officers. I’m not aware of any of them that could be considered Trump loyalists. In a perfect world they are apolitical, but obviously it takes some political acumen to become a general or an admiral. From what I can tell in general the high-level military are not Trumpists. DHS reports to the Homeland Security Secretary, who will obviously be replaced. So I would say that Biden should have almost no trouble replacing the true “loyalists” in the ranks. ---
**Author:** ![FlikTheBlue](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fliktheblue/32/10972_2.png) [@FlikTheBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlikTheBlue)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2020, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-wins-the-election-how-active-will-he-be-in-purging-trump-loyalists/915953/6 "2020-07-22T02:06:25Z")
> **['Wednesday night massacre' as Trump appointee takes over at global media...](https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/17/media/us-agency-for-global-media-michael-pack/index.html)** > > The heads of four organizations overseen by the US Agency for Global Media (USAGM) were all dismissed Wednesday night -- a move likely to heighten concerns that new Trump-appointed CEO Michael Pack means to turn the agency into a political arm of the... Here’s a good example of the type of thing I was thinking about. Trump recently appointed one of his loyalists to run the US Agency for Global Media, including Radio Free America and Radio Free Europe. Mr. Pack removed the heads of four organizations under the USAGM and replaced them with Trump loyalists. What I’m wondering, and concerned about the possibility that it might happen, is that the new people in those positions that were appointed by Mr. Pack will remain during a Biden administration. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2020, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-wins-the-election-how-active-will-he-be-in-purging-trump-loyalists/915953/7 "2020-07-22T02:12:19Z")
Everybody has to go. Every last single one of them. If they were appointed by Trump they can’t be trusted. If they were holdovers who did not resign rather than work for Trump they can’t be trusted. Some of them may be excellent people that are really needed in their jobs but many of them would commit treason if Trump asked them to, or even without a request, and we can’t take a chance by leaving them in office. ---
**Author:** ![epbrown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e47774/32.png) [@epbrown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/epbrown)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2020, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-wins-the-election-how-active-will-he-be-in-purging-trump-loyalists/915953/8 "2020-07-22T02:32:31Z")
How are we measuring effectiveness. If we’re sizing him up next to Trump himself, there’s no way he can win. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2020, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-wins-the-election-how-active-will-he-be-in-purging-trump-loyalists/915953/9 "2020-07-22T02:37:10Z")
The purge needs to be quite large. ProPublica compiled a list in 2017. Probably more now. > **[Here are More than 1,000 Officials Trump has Quietly Deployed Across the...](https://projects.propublica.org/graphics/beachhead)** > > They include dozens of former lobbyists, Trump campaign staffers and some affiliated with the online far-right. ---
**Author:** ![flurb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@flurb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flurb)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2020, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-wins-the-election-how-active-will-he-be-in-purging-trump-loyalists/915953/10 "2020-07-22T02:41:41Z")
There are approximately 4,000 politically appointed positions in the federal government – i.e. jobs whose occupants are determined by the President or an agency head (in reality, even those appointed by agency heads are at least signed off on by the White House). They serve at the pleasure of the President and do not enjoy the same job protections as career civil servants. This isn’t just Cabinet secretaries, but the entire upper management tier at every federal department or agency, and a good chunk of the middle management. Almost all of the people in those positions will be replaced, but that happens every time there is a change in administration (particularly if there is a change of party). There is the practice of “burrowing in” where political appointees attempt to transfer into or reclassify their position as a career civil service position. These are subject to review by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM). Of course, Trump has been actively trying to dismantle OPM. ---
**Author:** ![Mr\_BinJu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@Mr\_BinJu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_BinJu)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2020, 9:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-wins-the-election-how-active-will-he-be-in-purging-trump-loyalists/915953/11 "2020-07-24T09:17:46Z")
Dude falls asleep talking to you. You think he’s gonna do anything? ---
**Author:** ![SuntanLotion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suntanlotion/32/16165_2.png) [@SuntanLotion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SuntanLotion)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2020, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-wins-the-election-how-active-will-he-be-in-purging-trump-loyalists/915953/13 "2020-08-11T13:56:44Z")
Sorry if this is a temporary hijack, but can anyone who saw the video of Joe asking if the guy was a junkie tell me they believe he is competent? ---
**Author:** ![FlikTheBlue](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fliktheblue/32/10972_2.png) [@FlikTheBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlikTheBlue)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2020, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-wins-the-election-how-active-will-he-be-in-purging-trump-loyalists/915953/14 "2020-08-24T14:01:57Z")
Given the current issues with the USPS, I’m bumping this thread in honor of our postmaster general, Louis DeJoy. Is it safe to assume he’s out on day 1 or 2 of a Biden administration? [https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/08/20/us-postal-service-louis-dejoy/%3FoutputType=amp](https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/08/20/us-postal-service-louis-dejoy/%3foutputType=amp) This article from the Washington Post describes DeJoy’s post election plans for the USPS. I assume that DeJoy is assuming a Trump victory. Is there some reason Biden would have difficulty getting rid of him? ---
**Author:** ![flurb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@flurb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flurb)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2020, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-wins-the-election-how-active-will-he-be-in-purging-trump-loyalists/915953/15 "2020-08-25T02:30:04Z")
While Biden could fire DeJoy, the Postmaster General is appointed by the Postal Service Board of Governors – which is currently packed with Trump appointees. So there’s no guarantee his replacement would be any better. ---
**Author:** ![FlikTheBlue](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fliktheblue/32/10972_2.png) [@FlikTheBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlikTheBlue)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2020, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-wins-the-election-how-active-will-he-be-in-purging-trump-loyalists/915953/16 "2020-08-25T02:38:58Z")
Could Biden simply replace the board? ---
**Author:** ![flurb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@flurb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flurb)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2020, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-wins-the-election-how-active-will-he-be-in-purging-trump-loyalists/915953/17 "2020-08-25T02:53:43Z")
The Washington Post had a recent article about the board and how Trump appointees will dominate it for years to come [available here](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/postal-service-trump-dejoy/2020/08/18/a9b4dd18-e14c-11ea-8181-606e603bb1c4_story.html). According to the article, members are Senate-confirmed, serve seven year terms and may only be removed for cause. Ironically, the reason why Trump was able to appoint the majority of the Board is because Bernie Sanders blocked President Obama’s nominees from getting a vote in the Senate. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2020, 6:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-wins-the-election-how-active-will-he-be-in-purging-trump-loyalists/915953/18 "2020-08-25T06:42:53Z")
> [@flurb](#): > > According to the article, members [of the USPS Board of Governors] are Senate-confirmed, serve seven year terms and may only be removed for cause. How many other appointees have fixed terms and can only be removed for cause? For example, the Chairman of the Fed. How many Trump loyalists are in positions like these? Will Biden easily be able to find cause to dump most or all of them? ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2020, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-wins-the-election-how-active-will-he-be-in-purging-trump-loyalists/915953/19 "2020-08-25T13:16:52Z")
Administrations sometimes purge people appointed by previous administrations since they want to reward supporters. Sometimes they just want competent people. Sometimes they want team players. Occasionally it is done out of spite. Pick two from column A and one from column B. ---
**Author:** ![flurb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@flurb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flurb)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2020, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-wins-the-election-how-active-will-he-be-in-purging-trump-loyalists/915953/20 "2020-08-26T00:14:19Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > How many other appointees have fixed terms and can only be removed for cause? I couldn’t find an exact number poking around, but fixed terms appointments are typically appointees to “independent” boards and commissions – the FEC, FCC, FTC, etc. Not all require “cause” for removal and what constitutes “cause” will depend on the authorizing statute. ---
**Author:** ![Mickyfinn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e19b73/32.png) [@Mickyfinn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mickyfinn)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2020, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-wins-the-election-how-active-will-he-be-in-purging-trump-loyalists/915953/21 "2020-08-26T15:42:50Z")
I’ll make it pretty simple for me. Get a calendar. Chronologically look at everything the orangeanus did. Do the exact opposite. Note: This does not only apply to his appointments. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-wins-the-election-how-active-will-he-be-in-purging-trump-loyalists/915953.md?page=2)